"cooking Up" A Vocation...?

[Pia Jesu]

Just watched EWTN's Fr. Leo Patalinghug cook up a 'scrumptuous meal of stuffed hamburgers, salmon patties and lamb kabobs (see YouTube or the  http://www.ewtn.com/savoringourfaith/ Episode List).  I was wondering if anyone would like to share a tale or two about cooking opportunities, experiences, etc. in monastic, convent or seminary settings...?  Fr. Patalinghug is also the author of a book titled Grace before Meals. :priest:

[Nunsuch]

There is another book called "Grace Before Meals." The subtitle is "Food Ritual and Body Discipline in Convent Culture." The author is Patricia Curran. While it may be out of print (University of Illinois Press, 1989), it is available in many libraries and used online, and may be of interest to people on this Phorum.  I recommend it.

[maximillion]

This book is available on amazon uk.

[maximillion]

This book is available on amazon uk.

 

Oh and yes, we had lots of rituals associated with the refectory.

 

You could tell the day of the week, the type of fast, a feast including its class.....from the menu.

 

We usually had silence with a reader who read from a Catholic newspaper ( marked texts only) or a holy book, sometimes the Rule and Constitutions.

We were permitted speech in the refectory on a day when a postulant entered, when there were Vows ceremonies or an anniversary, but not otherwise.

 

We entered with a set of our own cutlery and napkins which were stored in the drawer at our place at table. At the end of a meal the plates and dishes went out to the kitchen annex where the novices washed them, but in refectory a small bowl of water and a drying cloth were provided for us to wash our cutlery and replace it in the drawer.

 

When I first entered we still had announcements about 'the third portion' which was technically the meat replacement at each meal of which we were all expected to take a helping. "Dear Sisters, the carrots are the third portion, the cabbage is the vegetable". Yeah, bit confusing. The practice came to an end soon after I took first vows.

 

I broke a serving dish the first time I acted as server  ( carrying around the full serving dishes from table to table.) I had to kneel holding the scooped up broken bits and beg forgiveness for my carelessness and fault against Holy Poverty.

I never saw the begging of soup, but there were some young Sisters who had both done it and witnessed who were still in the noviciate with me.

 

In summer, we often had the first part of Rec in the big refectory sitting shelling peas or trimming beans or peeling fruit or something. It was a bit of a deviation from the norm (and hence enjoyed) as we were able to sit with whomever we wished and associate with the professed nuns.

 

We chanted a long grace from chapel through the cloister and into refectory for the main meal of the day, which came just after the Angelus and Terce. Then everyone stood behind her chair and at Mother's knock each raised her chair, swooshed it behind her and sat down making the minimum of noise. It took me months to perfect that swoosh and I had to suffer the ignominy of being the only one who scraped her chair legs on the floor for all that time.

[Pia Jesu]

Thanks for sharing, Maximillion!  What an interesting glimpse into the monastic refectory!  Such rituals and rites certainly must have provided a sense of structure.  And the fact that everyone put, for example, their cutlery (utensils in the U.S.A!) and napkins in their

"proper place" in each drawer, surely confirms common beliefs, ideals, etc.  Sure would like to hear more about the "begging for

soup!"  Some people might view such a practice as meaningless or demeaning, but there has to be some higher purpose or symbolism attached to it.  The chanting of grace (on the way to the refectory), preparing the veggies or fruit, and even the broken serving dish episode, must be delightful memories for you! :nun3: 

[Totally Franciscan]

Coming from an Army family (my dad was a Colonel) and also being in an active community and contemplative one, I often meditated on how training (or formation) in both were similar.  Recruits in the military will tell you that their training is to nullify the personal for the sake of the group and to follow orders without a second thought.  This is to save lives in combat.  In religious life, all these little things mentioned above by other posters are there to basically do the same thing, except the end result is to belong entirely to Jesus, to be humble and less attached to self.  The postulant/novice who understands this will have a much easier time in formation.  Those who take it personally will have a harder time, but that is what formation is for.  I was actually surprised that, at the tender age of 18, those little humiliations never bothered me.  I am sure it was grace.  I had to chuckle at the memory, but we too had drawers at our place in refectory, but our whole table service was contained therein.  The tables were left clear so the novices could wash them after every service.  One interesting note was the tables were covered in padded oil cloth (for those who remember what that was) so as to cut down on the noise of placing our dishes and utensils on the table. 

[maximillion]

Oh, yes, ours were covered with that too.

 

You know I am sure many many of these aspects of convent life are the same or very similar from convent to convent.

 

I remember when I had a live in with the Benedictines, it was customary for certain things to be served in the bowl or on the plate already, and in this case a plate was passed down the table so that those who wanted/needed less were able to lift this off their plate and put it on this other one so that there was no waste. 

One day it was stewed rhubarb for dessert, which was served un-sweetened, with a small bowl of sugar being passed around for those who wanted it. 

Unfortunately one of the older Sisters either couldn't see or didn't look, and when the bowl of sugar came her way she calmly ladled her unwanted rhubarb into it. Much to the consternation of the poor novice who was server, who tried to yank the bowl out of Sister's hands, to no avail. The look on both their faces was something to behold - all of this carried out in total silence - until I started to laugh.

Oops.

[MarieLynn]

We too had padded tabletops in the refectory, and our cutlery or tools as they were known, were always washed at the table and the wrapped in our napkin, each end secured by a long white headed pin and stowed in the drawer at our place. When we processed into the refectory we had to stand facing the Crucifix on the back wall, until our Sister gave us the knock to sit down, then without scraping the chair, we had to be seated as noislessly as possible, and wait, eyes down, until the server passed us the dish from which we all had to take a portion. Should we need to to have something passed to us e.g. bread, we had to place our right hand on the tabletop, and wait until one of those on either side of us noticed, and tugged gently at our sleeve, and then we would mime what it was we wanted. Asking for bread was a breaking apart motion, butter was a back and forth small sweep in the right hand - miming a spreading motion, a knife was a cutting movement, a fork was extending 3 fingers on the table, and the list went on. We used to refer to it as 'table talk', and in the main it worked perfectly well. When I came home it took a bit of getting used to asking aloud for things at the table, for even on "big" feastdays, when we had recreation at mealtimes, we were not permitted to ask aloud for things, but had to use the 'table talk'. This was so that we would always remain aware of the needs of our fellow sisters.

[Pia Jesu]

Were sisters permanently assigned to be cooks...or was the duty rotated?  Did those in formation help in the kitchen--beyond washing the dishes, pans, etc.?  And yes, any attempt to stifle laughter would be

doomed (albeit impossible) in a silent refectory! :hehe2:

 

 

[MarieLynn]

The postulants were always assigned to work in the Kitchen, under the tutelage of a professed sister who was the "Kitchen Sister", and mainly did the donkey work there, peeling potatoes, chopping veges etc as well as doing the washing up, pots and pans etc. The duties were rotated every 6 weeks, kitchen, refectory, servers, as well as those who worked alongside the sister in the Laundry would change with those who were assigned Chapel work, and those doing the domestic work over in the House.

When we went to the Novitiate, we found the novices did everything, apart from actually cooking the meal, but again worked under a Sister in the kitchen. Everything else was done by the novices, and came under the direction of the 2nd year novices and Novice Mistresses (2). We postulants assisted wherever we were assigned but after our Clothing, we were expected to take a more active role in certain areas. As each new batch of postulants arrived, we found we had an extra pair of hands to help out, but those disappeared after they were Clothed. The senior novices (2nd year)were always in charge of each area, and when they became professed sisters, we moved up a notch on the ladder.

The refectory was always supposed to be an 'ocean of calm' in an otherwise frantic day, but sometimes it was impossible to stifle giggles especially when a sister got the hiccups, or a stomach rumbled loudly in the silence. We had a sister who frequently mispronounced words when she was the Reader for the week, and sometimes it was so hard not to laugh when she came out with a classic mispronunciation that meant something entirely different!!!!. That sister was usually removed pretty quickly, and the next reader replace her and continue the reading.

[maximillion]

We had Professed Sisters in charge of each 'department', like the Laundry, Kitchen, and Farm ( it was a large smallholding, if that makes sense).

Other heads of department, where it mattered less for continuity, rotated every three years, so Sr Vestry became Sr Household (cleaning), Sr Household became Sr Librarian etc.

 

In my fourteen years, the Sister in charge of the kitchens never changed, though she had a coterie of Professed to help her, and we had a similar hierarchy as that noted by Marielynn as above in the noviciate.

 

We all helped out with the heavy work - veg prep, heavy cleaning, veg growing and weeding, haymaking, laundry. Everyone did 'Common Work' for a couple of hours a day, including the Superiors.

 

The only time we novices got put in charge of anything was in the summer when it was harvest. From mid June until the end of September we had masses of fruit and veg to harvest, wash and trim, then either bottle, can or freeze, and it was always all hands on deck. A couple of years we had bumper crops and almost everyone joined in this work, and for once and the only time I can recall, the noviciate kept working right through LOTH, only the professed Sisters attending.

 

The relentless physical labour had its advantages: we were permitted quiet speech (!) and we had a mid morning break and a mid afternoon break with snacks, often stewed or fresh fruit - there were masses of it. One year I made myself a bit ill eating cherries. It was one time when no one had to keep the fast so strictly in that we could eat and drink between meals without asking permission, and we all mixed with each other. I got to know a few of the Professed Sisters quite well and we would laugh and joke together.

Sometimes by the time evening collation came round we simply did not want to look at another vegetable! 

 

We had permanent fast so our meals looked a bit like this:

Breakfast: Plain bread with no spread except on Sundays when one could choose either butter OR jam, with a big bowl of coffee, one added hot milk to taste - no sugar.

At Easter we had Croissant and at Christmas Day we had hot spicy rolls.

 

Lunch - our main meal of the day.

Soup, thin in summer and thick with pulses added in winter. Bread if we were not in a fast period.

Vegetables (including the famous third portion!)

Either Potatoes, Rice, or Pasta.

Three times a week and on all first class feasts inc Sundays - either an egg or cheese based portion.

Salad with a dressing or a piece of fresh fruit.

Dessert on Sundays and feast days, a milky pudding thing in the winter or a a fruit based something in summer. We could also have our home made yoghurt or soft cheese with the dessert, alongside it.

Home made cider (it was alcoholic) Water, cup of coffee - black no sugar.

 

Collation (light evening meal)

Bread if not in the fast

Soup

Salad

Fruit. 

 

There were no condiments on the tables ever, and bowls of sugar were for the guest parlours.

 

Sisters on retreat sat at a separate table and were always permitted more of everything.

Sisters who were ill ate a different, fuller menu and may be permitted meat - usually chicken, or fish.

[Nunsuch]

Thanks for all the insights into refectory culture! May I ask a question of those who told of their experiences?  Are/were you in contemplative orders? I ask because I think "active" sisters had less fasting and more meat, to "fuel" them for their teaching, nursing, etc.  At least, this is true of the communities I have studied--and where I have talked with sisters who have been in for awhile. The "third portion" and no meat, for example, do not seem typical of teaching or nursing communities from what I have studied.  Please correct me if I'm wrong.

[maximillion]

You are right, I was a cloistered nun in a quite penitential community.

 

Have to admit I very rarely, except for the early days when I first entered, felt hungry or deprived.

 

Some postulants were ordered a glass of milk and a 'petite galette Normonde' (little Normandy biscuit) mid morning for the first six weeks or so. This was notably the ones who's stomachs rumbled alarmingly during the LOTH!!! Most people adapted quite quickly.

 

We had tons of biscuits and chocolates donated each year. The biscuits mostly went to the parlours or the soup kitchen we ran. We each had a big bar of chocolate during our annual eight day retreat and a big tin/box of chocs was passed round on Christmas and Easter days.

 

The spicy hot rolls we had on Christmas morning flooded the cloister with their aroma as we got up before dawn, then we had them to look forward to as we shivered in our massive un-heated chapel. They were worth the wait and every scrap and crumb was eaten. 

 

I have the recipe, maybe I'll make some instead of Hot Crozzies this Easter.

[emma8201986]

Oh, Max, that food would have killed me!! 

[Nunsuch]

Please post the recipe here, Maximillion!  They sound great, and it's still cold enough here that there will be plenty of time to enjoy those buns.